By Shashi Kala
| 18 March 2009
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IPOH, 18 March 2009: The support of the Indian Malaysian community is important to the police although some in the community perceive the police force negatively.

“If this negative perception is allowed to persist, it can stifle cooperation between the two parties,” said Perak police chief Datuk Zulkefli Abdullah.

He said the police were concerned about the increasing involvement of Indian Malaysians in crime and drug abuse, especially among the community’s youths under the age of 30, and hence a concerted effort was needed to check the problems.

“But what is more important is the awareness within the Indian Malaysian community of the problems and together with other parties, find permanent solutions to the problems,” he said when launching a police-Indian Malaysian community programme in Ipoh’s Little India today.

Zulkefli said for a start, a number of initiatives had been drawn up, which included finding job opportunities for Indian Malaysian youths with the cooperation of the Manpower Department and disseminating information on job vacancies with the help of the Indian Chamber of Commerce.

He said police would also provide information to encourage Indian Malaysian youths to join the police force or its volunteer corps, set up a police post in Little India to improve security in the area and make it easier for the traders to deal with the police.

At the launching ceremony, it was also announced that MCIS Zurich Insurance Bhd would sponsor death insurance coverage of RM10,000 and medical coverage of RM500 for each of the 2,000 newly registered Rakan Cop members. — Bernama